Milk products generally are composed of five main components; water, protein, fat, minerals, and milk sugar. When processed for consumption, milk can be formulated to contain different percentages of these individual components to meet a consumer's nutritional need or flavor preference. Common formulations of milk beverages include: nonfat (skim), 1%, 2%, whole, ½ and ½, light cream, and heavy cream. Recently, innovative dairy processing technologies have introduced new formulations to target more specific nutritional needs of consumers. These formulations include dairy beverage products that are lactose free, high protein, high calcium, and reduced milk sugar.
In food service applications it is preferable to include a wide variety of milk products to meet the needs of different recipes and consumer preferences. It is not uncommon for a food service provider to inventory at least five different liquid dairy products to fulfill these needs.
In food service applications beverage dispensing equipment may be utilized to dispense bulk beverages. These dispensers vary from dispensing soda products, juice, teas, iced coffee, or the like. The products dispensed from this equipment may be concentrated, and may be packaged, for example, in a bag within a box system that attaches to the dispensing apparatus. Some dispensers may also include a water connection that serves to re-constitute the concentrate(s) to the correct dilution. These dispensers may also have a refrigeration system to control the temperature of the stored product concentrate(s) and for controlling the temperature of the final beverage.